Road grader



Aug. 1, 1961 R. J. NEWELL ETAL ROAD GRADER Filed March 20, 1959 RJNeweZZ JH Jones I N VE NTORS ATTORNEY Unite tates This invention relates to movement of persons and material from place to place, to the surfaces on and over which such movement is made, as well as to equipment for preparing such surfaces to render them suitable for such movement and in order that such movement may be facilitated.

The invention relates particularly to the modification of the topography or the grading of the earths surface including in the building of roads, highways and the like, and to equipment by which such grading is accomplished.

In grading, equipment of various kinds has been employed including scrapers suspended from or carried ahead or behind a vehicle. Such equipment has been cumbersome, expensive, inefiicient, and has involved excessive time, cost to operate and maintain, and otherwise has been unsatisfactory. Also it has failed properly to mix or integrate segregated materials in the best manner to obtain a homogeneous mass best suitable for roadways and which equipment has had sufiicient flexibility including the capacity to vary the thickness of applied surfacing material.

It is an object of the invention to overcome the difliculties enumerated and to provide a relatively simple and inexpensive road grader which can be easily transported from place to place, and can be attached to a propelling vehicle and used for mixing or integrating surfacing ma terial as well as for adjusting the depth thereof.

Another object of the invention is to provide a road grader of relatively light weight, with the parts well braced or reinforced and in which the bearing surfaces are provided with a protective metal plate or strip and in which the blades and other parts may be easily replaced individually or as a unit.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will be apparent from the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawing wherein:

FIG. 1 is a perspective illustrating one application of the invention;

FIG. 2, a side elevation;

FIG. 3, a section on line 3-3 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4, a section on line 44 of FIG. 1; and

FIG. 5, a section on line 55 of FIG. 1.

Briefly stated the invention comprises spaced substantially parallel runners between which are mounted a pair of grader blades disposed in V-shape with the point centrally and forwardly between the runners in order to move material laterally from the center towards the runners and with a second pair of angularly disposed grader blades having their forward ends disposed forwardly of the first blades and attached to the forward portions of the runners and with their rear end disposed intermediate the first blades in order to sweep material inwardly and rearwardly towards the first blade and with the first blades adapted to sweep the material outwardly towards the runners to effect a mixing or integrating opertaion and with a transverse rear blade for providing the final engaging and smoothing action, the blades being adjustably supported on the runners and with the structure so made that the parts may be individually or collectively renewed and with means for attachment of the device to a propelling vehicle or the like and with additional means by which the device may be easily lifted.

With continued reference to the drawing, the invention comprises spaced substantially parallel runners and 11 between which are mounted a pair of grader blades atent ice 12 and 13 welded or otherwise secured to angle members 14 and 15 mounted on Wooden members 16 and 17.

The grader blades 12 and 13 are disposed angularly substantially in V-shape with the converging portions forwardly and centrally between the runners in order to move material divergingly from front to rear after such material has been engaged by a pair of further spaced grader blades 18 and 19 mounted on angle bars 20. and 21 carried by wooden members 22 and 23.

The grader blades 18 and 19 have spaced forward ends adjustably mounted on the forward portions of the ,runners by means of inverted U-shaped mounting brackets 24 and 25 extending over the runners 10 and 11 and adapted to be adjustably mounted thereon by means of mounting screws 26 and lock nuts 27. The brackets 24 and 25 have extensions 28 and 29 attached to the mem-. bers 22 and 23 by bolts or other fasteners 30. I

The grader blades 18 and 19 extend inwardlyand rearwardly to concentrate or move material closer together and in contact with the first grader blades 12 and 13 located in V-shaped relation whereby when the grader engages material, such material first will be moved centrally of the grader until it engages the second blades and then move outwardly in opposite directions thus providing a mixing or integration of such material. 7

After the material is engaged by the blades 18 and 19, 12, and 13 it will be engaged by a transverse blade 31 carried by an angle iron 32 mounted on a wooden bar 33 to which are attached by means of bolts or other fasteners 34 a pair of inverted U-shaped brackets 35 and 36 attached to the runners 10 and 11 by means of adjusting screws 26 with lock nuts 27. This adjustment upon the runners 10 and 11 may be utilized to vary the thickness of material being graded.

In order to increase the durability of the runners the lower surface may be provided with protective strips or plates 36 and 37. The runners may be of material of relatively light weight, such as wood and have a metal shoe or protective strip or plate and may adjustably receive and be attached by adjusting screws to an inverted U-shaped bracket received over the runners.

The runners adjustably support a framework comprising a pair of angular channel side members 38 and 39 and supplemental substantially parallel relatively short channel members 40 and 41, separate plates 42 and 43 being Welded or otherwise secured to the channel members 38 and 40 and 39" and 41, respectively, with the channel members fastened to the grader blades by bolts and nuts 44, one of such bolts extending through the plate 42, two extending through a transverse angle bar or brace 45 welded or otherwise secured to the members 38 and 40, 39 and 41, and with a pair of such bolts extending through plates 46 and 47 and into the wooden members 16 and 17 on the rear ends of which blades 12 and 13 are mounted and with similar bolts extending through a plate 48 welded or otherwise secured to a pair of channel members 49 and 50 which themselves are welded or otherwise secured in substantially parallel relation between the angle members 45 and a corresponding spaced angle member 51, a pair of upright angle braces 52 and 53 being provided for a draft connection 54 (FIG. 2) to be applied by spaced mounting pins 55 and 56. The upper ends of the members 52 and 53 are supported by braces 57 and 58 welded or otherwise secured thereto and having the rear ends of such braces welded to the transverse angle member 45.

It will be apparent that a grading device is provided which is relatively simple but by means of which adequate mixing as well as grading of surface material may be accomplished.

In order to make it possible to transport the same from one location to another, an upright post 59 is welded or otherwise secured to the angle bar 51 centrally thereof and receives about its upper end a yoke 60 with diverging rearwardly disposed arms 61 and 62 welded or otherwise attached at their rear ends to a transverse angle brace 63, welded or otherwise secured to the channel members 38 and 39 and attached to lugs 69 carried by the blade supporting member 33 by means of bolts or nuts 44. The upper end of the post 59 is provided with a socket 64 and a transverse opening 65 in order that a lifting member 66 of a tractor or other propelling vehicle 67 may be inserted and secured thereto by means of pin 68.

It will be obvious to those skilled in the art that various changes may be made in the invention Without departing from the spirit and scope thereof and therefore the invention is not limited by that which is illustrated in the drawing and described in the specification, but only as indicated in the accompanying claims.

What is claimed is:

1. In combination spaced substantially parallel runners, a transverse grader member extending across and adjustably connecting the rear end portions of said runners, an elongated generally rectangular frame disposed lengthwise between said runners, the rear portion of said frame being connected to said transverse member, forwardly diverging grader members having their inner ends secured to the front portion of said frame and their outer diverging ends adjustably secured to the front end portions of said runners, forwardly converging grader members connected to said frame and having forward ends located intermediate the inner and outer ends of said forwardly diverging grader members, a pair of draft connections located one each on opposite sides of the center of the front edge of the frame for engagement by the lift arms of a tractor, and a third connection providing with the other two a three point hitch by which the device can be suspended and propelled.

2. A road grader comprising the combination of spaced substantially parallel runners, a frame attached to said runners and comprising a transverse member extending across the rear end portions of said runners, a substan tially rectangular structure having long and short sides with one of said long sides connected to said transverse member, forwardly diverging members having their inner ends connected to said substantially rectangular structure and their outer ends connected to the front end portion of said runners, forwardly converging members connected to said rectangular structure and having their inner ends located intermediate the inner and outer ends of said forwardly diverging members, grader blades removably carried by said transverse diverging and converging members, and a three point hitch connection by which the device can be suspended from and propelled by a tractor.

3. The structure of claim 1 in which the grader members have removable blades.

4. The structure of claim 2 in which said frame is adjustably mounted on said runners.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,493,927 Fischer May 13, 1924 1,755,631 Burnett Apr. 22, 1930 2,160,376 Arndt May 30, 1939 2,543,943 Skeem Mar. 6, 1951 

